Red Dead Requiem
by Adelilah
Summary: After bearing witness to the coldblooded murder of his parents, Hicks Red swears to avenge them and kill the young teen responsible; Jonathan 'Joey' Garcia. Years later as a bountyhunter, he finally finds one of Garcias henchmen, Harry Cold, but in order to get some answers about Garcias whereabouts, he needs to team up with a rivaling bountyhunter: the notorious Rango
1. Red like blood

**It is time fooor... Hicks story :D! Lets skip the chit-chat and get on with it, let's see how Hicks ended up the way he is now ;)**

***** Chapter One : Red Like Blood *****

A female coyote was standing in the kitchen of the little shack-like house, peeling potatoes and humming a little tune for herself. She brushed some of her ashblonde hair out of her face and washed off the potato in her hand before gingerly placing it in a pot. She picked up the next potato and began to peel it too.

But then she stopped and flickered her pointy ears. The house was a bit too quiet for her taste. She sighed, took off the dirty apron she was wearing and walked into the other room, where she and her husband were sleeping and put her hands on her hips. There was a piano in the room too, and the little puppy who previously had been playing on the piano, was now sitting and playing with a butterfly that somehow got into the house.

"Hicks" She said, and the little puppy instantly turned and swiveled his overdimensioned ears at her, one of the ears were still drooping and gave him a lopsided look. "I can't hear you playing?"

The puppy, hardly older than eight years old, groaned in annoyance. "Mo-oom!" He winced. "I HAVE been playin'!"

"Then play some more! You need to practice"

"Why?" He grimaced at the piano. "It's boring!"

His mother tugged her mouth up in a smile, she couldn't help it. "Because it's important, dear. Music helps you to grow..."

"You said the same thing 'bout broccoli, but I'm still small!" Hicks muttered and turned to the piano, clinking down one of the tangents with a bored grimace. "I want pa to come home now..."

"He'll be back just in time for dinner, dear, as always" She turned back to the kitchen to continue preparing the dinner. "Now, keep practicing or I'll tell pa!" She heard another groan from her son in response, but just as she put her apron back on she heard her son start playing a little simple tune on the piano once again. She smiled and picked up the half-way peeled potato to finish it.

As she had said, 'pa' entered through the door just as she put down the pot with steaming, newly boiled potatoes on the table. His timing was impeccable, as always when he'd come back from his 'work'.

"Pa!" Hicks happily exclaimed when the large, light haired coyote male entered through the door. He jumped down from his seat by the table and ran straight into his fathers arms, just as his mother turned around and acknowledged her husbands arrival. "Pa!"

"Oy!" His father laughed when his sons sudden attack nearly knocked his breath out. "Watch it there ya lil' tyke!" He said jokingly with a grin and quickly ruffled his sons ashblonde hair before turning around to take off his saddlebag, which he carried over his shoulder and take off his coat.

When he put the saddlebag down on the floor, his wife heard a heavy clinking sound, like metal hitting metal. She gave him a worried look, but he didn't seem to notice it when he walked up to her and planted a kiss on her lips.

"I've missed'cha, Carla dear" He said lowly. She replied with a small smile as he began sniffing the air. "Mmm, smells delicious!" He turned to the kitchen table. "What is it?! I'm starvin'!" He grinned as he took a giant leap for the table and in the same swift movement slumped down on his chair, eying the pots. She sighed when she saw that he was wearing his gun and gunbelt to the table, but seeing as he just came back she decided not to say anything.

"Potatoes!" Hicks said and gagged, Carla rolled her eyes at her son. "Potatoes and corn, as always!"

"Hey, I haven't had some o' yer moms potatoes in a week! I for one don't mind!" His father drooled and reached for the pot of boiled potatoes. "B'sides, ya better feast on this while we have it, Hicks, b'cause as of t'morrow, no more potatoes an' corn!"

Hicks curiously perked his ears, making them both stand up straight for once, while Carla once again gave her husband a worried frown. "Eugene, whaddya mean by that?"

"Oh you'll see later!" Eugene mused and winked reassuringly at her.

The Red family continued their dinner, while Eugene was telling them what he had seen and been through during the week he had been gone on another one of his 'oddjobs'. When they all had finished up, he brought his saddlebag back to the table.

"I got a lil' somethin' for ya, kid!" He grinned and tossed a long, wrapped up little package to his son, who caught it in the air and eagerly ripped the paper off.

In his hand, he held a knife. His eyes widened as he grabbed the hilt and pulled it out of the scabbard, and grinned when he saw his reflection in the shiny, sharp steel. "Oh boy! Thanks, pa!" He beamed at his father. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

Eugene chuckled. "Don't mention it, Hicky" He glanced at his wife, and his smile faded when he saw her face had gotten paler and she was eying the knife with a disapproving frown. He turned back to his son. "Why dont'cha go outside, find yerself some firewood an' try carvin' somethin' real nice with it, eh?"

Hicks nodded and within a matter of seconds, he had bolted outside. Eugene chuckled once again at his son, but then his wife solemnly got up from her chair and began take the dishes from the table. Her jaw was tightly clenched as she stacked the three plates in her hand and walked over to the kitchen bench.

"What's wrong, Carla?" Her husband asked, and she hesitated for a minute, leaning over the dishes on the bench.

"Where do I begin?" She began with a hopeless tone in her voice. She turned back to Eugene with a sad frown. "You're giving our son a WEAPON?!"

"It's just a knife!" He replied with a shrug. "An' I doubt he'll use it to kill anyone!"

"That's not what I'm thinking; what if he hurts himself with it? He's just a child, and you can't just leave a child alone with a knife in his hands! It's dangerous!"

"Ya can't just chain him to the piano forever either!"

"I will NOT allow our child to grow up without music!"

"An' I ain't gonna allow our child to grow up a wimp!" He folded his arms across his chest. "He needs to learn how to handle knifes an' guns; he needs to be able to defend himself! Ya never know what'll happen in the future, an' I'd say that he's better off with a knife against a bunch of attackers than with a notesheet!"

"You're sounding like you want our child to grow up an outlaw?"

"I won't allow him to b'come an outlaw either, but just b'cause our son plays by the book doesn't mean the people 'round him always will!"

Carla opened her mouth to object, but quickly changed her mind and shut it. Instead, she looked out through the small kitchen window and saw Hicks sitting on the chopping block, carving into a small piece of firewood. She gulped nervously, seeing for her inner self how he accidentally slips with the knife and cuts up his hand instead. But luckily, it never happens.

"Where did you even get the money for it?" She asked instead, her voice was lower now.

She didn't hear him reply, instead she heard him pick up his saddlebag and turn it upside down, emptying it of it contents and making a lot of noise while doing so. She turned around and gawked speechless at the mass of golden coins and bundles of money that just poured out of his bag. When everything had been emptied on the kitchen table, he let the saddlebag drop to the floor and grinned at her.

"As I said; no more potatoes an' corn!"

She didn't know what to say at first. But then she walked to the table and ran a hand over the money, feeling the cool coins rattle under her fingers. They were real. "W-where did you get all this?" She asked, still stunned.

"Where do ya think? I've earned 'em!" He answered and smirked, but she only got a horrified look on her face as she turned her head at him.

"Y-you gotta take it back!" She told him, and he staggered back in surprise.

"What?!"

"It's blood money, innit Eugene?!" She glanced at the money, shuddered and backed away from it. "W-we can't accept it...!"

Eugene was silent for a while, but then he let out an annoyed and defeated growl. "Wow, really Carla?! You're serious right now?!" He gritted his fangs and clenched his jaw. "Have ya seen what our farm looks like nowadays?! It's a mess! It's fallin' apart an' we ain't had any good rain for years! We had to sell our livestock to survive an' for god knows how long, all we've managed to grow is potatoes an' corn! We don't even have money to send Hicks to a school, but now when I've finally got enough hard-earned money to solve our problems, you're tellin' me to give it back?! What's WRONG with ya, woman?!"

She didn't answer him,only kept staring down at the floor. She knew all those things all too well, but just thinking where he got that money made her uneasy. She knew someone had to die for that money.

"I... I give up!" He flopped down on a chair with his back to her, burying his face in his hands. "I give up! All I'm tryin'a do is to be a good husband an' father. I just wanna take care of my family! Y'two are ev'rythin' I got, an' I wanna give y'all the very best, but I can't! I can't b'cause no matter what I do, you're always findin' faults in ev'rythin'!" He paused and let out a defeated sigh. "I just give up..."

He didn't react when Carla carefully walked up to him and put her arms around his neck and leaned the side of her head against his. "I'm sorry, Eugene... I didn't mean to make you upset..." She said lowly and glanced at the money. "I love you, you KNOW I do... But it's those men you work for..." She paused when he shifted, lifting his head up and glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "I always get this ominous feeling when they're nearby... And that child that rides with them... I've never seen such evil eyes on anything living before!"

"Joey? Don't worry 'bout him, he's just our mascot, sort of!" He said reassuringly and calmly stroke her right arm with his hand. "An' it ain't like we're doin' illegal stuff, like ridin' 'round shootin' people an' rob banks!" He said with a chuckle, but there was something odd about that chuckle. Like he wasn't really meaning what he said.

Carla nodded and hugged her husband tighter, but she wasn't sure she wanted to believe what he said. Suddenly, the door opened and Hicks stepped inside, holding the knife in one hand and a block of wood in the other.

"Umm, pa?" He asked and both his overdimensioned ears drooped.. "Can ya help me? This is a lot harder than it seemed..."

Eugene chuckled once again and got up from his chair, gave Carla a light peck on her cheek and walked out to the farm with his son. She smiled a small smile as she began to take care of the rest of the dishes, but she couldn't stop glancing at the money. With a small shudder, she decided to stuff it all back into the saddlebag and stashed it in one of the cabinets.

The farm was on the edge of the Mojave desert, close to an old quarry. Red, dry sand with a few, pale green tufts of headstrong grass that grew here and there and an occasional tumbleweed would sometimes pass. It was a calm, but harsh and unforgiving place, and because of this, they were the only farmers around. The closest town, Bedrock, was at least half an hour away.

The well between the shack-like house and the empty, ramshackle barn was practically dried up, and the fences that once were large paddocks, was now falling apart along with everything else. Except for one small corral, which was inhabited by the one remaining critter of their once large herd of livestock; Eugenes pale brown roadrunner named Lucky.

And they were sitting outside Luckys corral while Eugene showed his son how to carve with the knife. While listening to his fathers instruction, Hicks couldn't help but to glance with wide eyes at the revolver he was carrying. He carefully touched the handle.

"Can I hold it, pa?" He asked, and Eugene was at first confused as to what his son meant, but then he noticed how fascinated he was with the gun.

He smiled, drew his gun and gave it to Hicks. "Just be careful with it, it's loaded!"

"Wow!" Hicks said as he got the heavy revolver in his small, pawlike hands. He tried to lift it, but it was heavier than he thought, so he gave it back to his father. "Can I shoot with it someday?" He asked eagerly.

"Sure" Eugene nodded. "In fact, when you're old enough, I'm thinkin' of gettin' ya one o' yer own!" He glanced at the house before turning back to his kid. "But don't tell yer ma, alright? She'd skin me alive if she ever found out!"

Hick giggled and shook his head. "Nah, I won't!"

…

That night, as the stars twinkled on the late night sky, Hicks found himself tossing and turning in the bed. They only had one bed and one bedroom, so he was always sleeping between his parents. But this night, he just couldn't seem to fall asleep. Instead, his attention was drawn to his fathers revolver, which was gleaming and reflecting the fullmoons light from the gunbelt his father had flung over the back of a chair.

Both his parents were sleeping heavily, and the temptation to sneak out to practice with the gun was extremely high! He knew an area where his father used to go and shoot, but he himself was never allowed to go there. If they had found out that he had been sneaking out in the middle of the night WITH the gun, they would get angry, even furious at him! Most of all his mother; she'd fly through the roof! But that was what made everything even more alluring.

He silently and carefully got out of bed, he HAD snuck out in the middle of the night before so he knew how to move to not wake anyone up, and walked up to the gunbelt. He quietly drew the gun and looked at the long, shining barrel with a wide grin. Some nights he'd snuck out because he just couldn't fall asleep, but now he wanted out and try to handle a gun. He knew he should probably wait until his father was willing to instruct him, but right now he didn't have the patience for it. He NEED to know what it feels like to fire a revolver!

Carrying the gun with both of his hands, he quietly sneaked out through the door and into the nearby quarry. He instantly found his dads practice grounds; a dead, fallen tree with a couple of glass bottles neatly rowed on the grayish trunk. Hicks grinned and took a deep breath as he slowly raised the gun with both of his hands. He aimed at the bottles and pulled the trigger, but nothing happened.

With a disappointed sigh, he turned the gun around so the barrel pointed straight up at his face. Maybe there was something stuck in the barrel? Or maybe it just wasn't loaded? But there was nothing in the barrel, and he saw the ends of the little bullets in the cylinders. With a shrug he pointed the gun at the bottles again and pulled the trigger, but once again nothing happened.

But then he noticed the little point sticking up from the cylinder; the hammer.

He looked at it for a while, then he had to use both of his thumbs to pull it back. He then pointed the gun at the glass bottles a third time, shaking slightly since his little arms were getting weary, and pulled the trigger. It was harder to pull this time, and when he did, a deafening bang came from the gun and the muzzle flared. The recoil caused the puppy to fall backwards, still with the smoking gun in his hand. Still dazed from the impact, he slowly sat upright and rubbed his head. He looked over at the bottles and noticed that one was missing, and instead there were shattered glass spread around the trunk. He grinned happily again.

But suddenly, he heard another gunshot and felt the fur on his neck stand straight up. He tried telling himself that it was just an echo from the cliffs, but then he heard two new consecutive gunshots and he tensed up. They came from the farm! His legs were wobbling and his heart hammered in his chest as he slowly got up and made his way back home.

Lucky was hysterically running around in his corral, making terrified squawks. Hicks got back just as he saw four men break into the house, while two stayed outside; a tall, longlegged lizard and a pale haired, young coyote boy. The boy didn't seem to be older than twelve years old. Scared, yet unnoticed, Hicks hurried to scurry into the condemned barn and peeked out through the crack made by a missing board in the wall, watching with a hammering heart the scene unfold in front of him.

He heard noises coming from the house, and he could swear he heard his mother scream. Shortly after, three of the men dragged his father out in front of the house, while the fourth was holding his mother in a tight grip with a gun pointed at her temple. His little heart came to a complete stop and for a moment he even forgot how to breathe when he recognized the men; they were the men his father worked with! It was the exact same men he'd sometimes ride away on another oddjob with! But he only knew the name of three of them; a heavily built, blue eyed porcupine everyone referred to as 'Bullseye', the lizards name was Harry Cold and the boys name was Jonathan Garcia, nicknamed 'Joey'. But for some reason, he couldn't spot Bullseye in the gang.

"Eugene!" Carla screamed when her husband got kicked in the back by one of the men, forcing him to go down on his knees. "Wh-what's goin' on?!" She sobbed, but the rodent-like creature holding her at gunpoint growled at her to shut up.

Eugene didn't answer his wife, instead he stared up at either Harry or Joey. "W-why are ya doin' this...?" He asked lowly, so low it was almost impossible for Hicks to catch what he said. "Wh-where's Hicks? What have y'all done to my son?!"

Suddenly, out of all the people, the boy walked up to the other coyote and roundhouse kicked him in the face. Blood gushed out of his mouth as his head violently jerked to the side and he fell onto the dusty ground, his wife screamed in terror behind him. Eugene spat out the blood and shaking got up on his knees again.

"Where's the money?" Joey asked calmly, and when Eugene didn't answer, he growled and stomped on the grown coyotes hand. Eugene roared in pain when he felt the bones in his hand snap, but he couldn't pull himself free from under the boys foot. "Where's my money?" The boy repeated.

"IN THE KITCHEN!" Carla screamed with a shrill, terrified voice. Joey snapped his head to her, and she sobbed. "I-in one of th-the kitchen cabinets! I-in a saddlebag!"

Joey nodded at one of the men, a chubby toad, to go back into the house and bring back the money. The boy finally stepped of Eugenes hand and the adult instantly withdrew it and cradled his broken hand in his other hand. He threw a sad look behind him at his wife.

"I-I'm sorry, Carla..." Eugene said to her with a thick voice and shook his head, his light, lank hair fell in his face and almost covered up his dark brown eyes. "I'm real' sorry!"

Soon, the toad came out with the saddlebag in his hands and tossed it at Harry, who caught it in the air and opened it, letting the young coyote boy inspect its contents. When he made sure all the money was still there, he made a notion with his head at the roadrunners, tied up outside the house, as a sign for him to leave it there. Harry nodded and walked towards the roadrunners to leave the bag, then he returned to the boys side.

"C-can we have our s-son back now, Joey?" Eugene pleaded, and held his hurt hand in a firm grip. "I-I'm sorry 'bout the money, b-but PLEASE, don't hurt my family!"

Hicks was frozen in fear. The men his father worked with sometimes came to the farm to pick his father up whenever they needed him for a job, and they had always scared him. He didn't dare to speak to any of them, but he had never thought that they'd actually do something like this! And what was up with the boy?! Before, they had always just treated Joey as a tag-along, letting him ride in the back of the group and he had never been especially talkative. But now, everyone was acting as if it was the boy who was the leader and followed every single one of his commands! He couldn't be more than twelve-thirteen year old, yet still had the adults full respect! Hicks knew there was a good reason to not like that boy, or any of the men for that matter!

"You know how hard it is to piss me off, Eugene..." Joey said and turned back to the adult coyote. His voice was cold, emotionless, even for someone who was so young. "But nothing piss me off more than when men I trust stabs me in the back like this!"

"I'm s-sorry!" Eugene clenched his eyes shut and hung his head. "I-I'm sorry, Joey... B-but look at our farm! It's fallin' apart! A-an' my son haven't even been able to go to school yet! W-we needed more money! I-I didn't think-...!"

"You didn't think I'd notice if you stuffed your pockets with more money than what we bargained for?" Joey cut him off and finished the sentence for him. He winced and nodded, a few tears even managed to escape down his long nose.

"P-punish me, do ANYTHIN' ya want with me, but PLEASE, don't lay a finger on my family!" Eugene carefully looked up at the boy again. "Th-this isn't their fault, it's mine! All mine!"

"Don't worry, punishing you is the reason we're here" Joey said and Harry stepped forth, drawing his gun and pointing it down at the kneeling coyote. His dark brown eyes widened underneath his pale bangs.

"Sorry, Eugene. Nothing personal" The lizard said and pulled the trigger, shooting him in the chest.

Carla screamed a bloodcurdling scream as her husbands body jolted back and fell backwards onto the dusty ground. He wasn't moving, and soon a pool of blood formed underneath his body, the red fluid quickly got absorbed by the dry sand.

"EUGENE!" Carla screamed again and managed to break free from the man who held her back. She ran up to her husbands limp body and picked his head up in her arms, brushing away strands of hair and dirt from his face while tears streamed down her cheeks. He was still breathing in staggering, uneven and obviously painful breaths while a thin stream of blood ran from the corner of his mouth. "E-Eugene! No!" She cried and pressed her forehead against his. "D-don't leave us! Don't go, Hicks and I need you... I need you!"

Euguene tried to smile and say something, but it came out as an incoherent wheeze and it ended in him coughing up blood. He drew a final, pained breath and closed his eyes, dying in his loved ones arms. Hicks became aware of what happened when he saw his mother starting to cry hysterically, before suddenly tilting her head backwards and howl. A coyotes howl of sorrow.

Hicks was like frozen to the ground, tears was dripping on the ground below him as he silently watched from the barn. He wanted to cry like his mother, run up to her and his fathers body and join in the howling, but he couldn't. His body refused to obey his commands and he went into a state of shock, not noticing that he cocked the hammer back on the gun he was still holding.

When the female coyote finally stopped howling, and instead went back to crying over her dead mate, Joey turned to look at Harry. The lizard watched with a tightly clenched jaw at the scene, still holding the gun he just fired at his friend.

"We don't leave witnesses" Joey said and looked back at the couple, Harry nodded again. The thin lizard walked around them and pointed the gun at the female coyotes back.

"Y-you... Monster..." She said between the sobs and tilted her head up to look at Joey, hate and rage glowed in her chestnut brown eyes. "I hope that whatever demon that spawned you feels remorse for giving birth to something as foul as you, fiend!"

"Don't worry, she does" Joey said in his usual, cold voice and the second after, Harry shot her in the back. Her body jerked upon the bullets impact, then fell over her husband, just as dead as him.

Hicks had finally somewhat broken out of the shock, at least enough for him to hunch over and start crying. He slammed his free fist into the ground as he cried, seeing for his inner self over and over again as his parents were shot and killed. But suddenly, someone grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and lifted him up as he howled in fear.

"Well, well, whaddo we got 'ere?" Someone said, and Hicks tensed up when he recalled that Bullseye, the big porcupine, hadn't been among the men who killed his parents.

Joey ordered the adults to set the house on fire as Bullseye approached them, carrying the armed puppy with one of his hands. He hadn't noticed the revolver the puppy carried. "Lookie what I found in the barn, chief!" He announced with a grin and threw him down at the ground, just next to his parents.

But just as Hicks landed on the ground, he accidentally squeezed the trigger and a fired a bullet at Bullseye. The porcupine tensed up for a second as he felt something hit his leg, then the pain exploded and he fell to the ground, screaming in agony and clutching his bleeding knee.

"SONNOVA BITCH!" He howled while the men, except for Joey and Harry, began to chuckle around him. "THE FUCKIN' KID SHOT ME!"

Hicks stared with wide eyes at the porcupine, squirming in pain, and then at the gun in his hand. With a shudder, he quickly tossed it away and turned around, noticing his parents. Their lifeless bodies were stacked on each other while the fire quickly consumed the house in the background.

"P-pa?" He squeaked, but his father neither moved nor replied. "M-ma?" His mother didn't show any signs of life either.

Harry turned to Joey, who watched the cub with an emotionless face. "Joey, what do we do with the kid?" He asked, and Joey was silent for a moment.

"We don't leave witnesses" The boy repeated, and Harry nodded solemnly once again.

The lizard drew his gun again and walked up to Hicks. The puppy looked up at him with large, tear-filled and fearful eyes. They had the same chestnut color as his mothers eyes had. Bullseye continued to howl in agony behind them, but Harry ignored the noise.

"Sorry about this, son" He said lowly as he once again raised his weapon. The cub started shivering in fear but didn't dare to say anything. Harry took a deep breath, then he squeezed the trigger and fired the third and final bullet at the last Red family member.

**And THAT my friends, is how to get an archenemy for life ;D! I'm not sure how long this will be, probably just about the same size as (Du)Rangos story (but definitely NOT like Bentleys mastodon of a story o_o)**

**Anyway, allow me to introduce a new villain; Jonathan 'Joey' Garcia. Somewhat based on a real person, this guy will make the Gajerra brothers look like Tweedledum and Tweedledee from Alice in Wonderland...**

**So, I hope you'll enjoy reading about Hicks story, and I'll finish the next chapter as soon as I can ;D! As always, a little review is always appreciated ;3**


	2. Bountyhunters

**Hehe, last chapter sure was one helluva way to kickstart a story xD... But here's the next chapter, time to find out what happened to Hicks ;P!**

***** Chapter Two : Bountyhunters *****

**Eleven years later...**

The sun was standing high on the sky as the little caravan of two riders made their way over the scorching hot desert. Or, at least one of them was riding, the other one, a light gray, bad looking ferret, had been tied over the back of his roadrunner. To stop the shaggy looking ferret from complaining over the rough treatment, he had been gagged with his own scarf. In front, rode a young, ashblonde coyote, a bountyhunter, and the ferret was a known roadrunner-thief; his bounty.

After a couple of hours of riding under the scorching heat, the ferret finally managed to struggle free from the gag. "OI! Dogface!" He hollered at the coyote, who sighed in annoyance. "Get me down from 'ere NOW! I'm thirsty, I'm in pain an' it's HOT out here! I've got my rights y'know!"

The coyote gritted his fangs and stopped the roadrunners, got down his golden brown bird and walked up to the ferret. "Ya only got the right to shut the fuck up!" He growled as he stuffed the rag-like scarf back into his mouth. "Or I'll put a bullet in yer brain an' I'd hate to waste bullets on vermin like you! You're just worth 350 after all!"

Through the gag, he could catch the ferret say "Bullshit!" as he walked back to his roadrunner and got up again. Thankfully, the town wasn't far away now.

Hicks Red, the coyote, was in deep thoughts as he continued on the road to the town of Bedrock, his hometown at the edge of the Mojave Desert, nestled in between sharp, edgy cliffs, to deposit the 'cargo'. He had been at this bountyhunter business for about a year now, hoping that it would help him find the men who killed his parents. He still remembered that day as it was yesterday, and some days, he wished he had just died alongside with them.

But no, he had been lucky; the smoke from the burning farm had been visible all the way to the town of Bedrock, and as soon as they spotted it, the sheriff put together a small posse to ride out and investigate. The scene they arrived to was haunting; the dry farmhouse and its barn was set ablaze, and in front of the burning remains of the house was three figures: Mr and Mrs Red, both dead with their eight year old son right next to them. At first, they thought the little puppy was dead as well, but then they noticed that he was still breathing and hurried to take him to the town. They arrived to the local doctor not a moment too soon. They managed to get the bullet in his chest out, thus saving his life. If he had been shot slightly more to the left, the bullet would have pierced his heart. It was almost like this little boy had a guardian angel by his shoulder! But that guardian angel hadn't done anything to save his parents...

When he recovered, he was adopted by the general store owner and his wife, Edmund and Jermaine Greene. Sure, they were loving and great parents, and he could finally go to school like the others, but they weren't his real ma and pa. They would never be. He grew up, constantly having the scene of his parents murder repeating itself to him from the back of his head. So he swore that one day, he'd find and kill every single one of the murderers and kill them. He couldn't wait to find Joey Garcia and put a bullet in HIS chest. But until then, he'd just have to settle with picking the small fries, like this roadrunner-thief.

The townspeople of Bedrock had always had a certain sympathy for the poor boy, but since he became a bountyhunter, that sympathy was slowly replaced with suspicion and fear. It was like they thought he'd end up the same as the dangerous criminals he was hunting down. The only one who didn't think of Hicks as dangerous was the sheriff, but he was still trying to talk the young coyote out of it, and try to convince him to put the gun away and settle down with a real job in Bedrock, perhaps helping his adoptive father out in the general store. But without success; Hicks was dead-set on finding Garcia and his henchmen, and kill them.

He arrived in Bedrock around afternoon, and went straight to the sheriffs office to dump off the bounty and claim his reward. Sheriff Mortimer, a middle aged groundhog, was reading through the newspapers when his door was opened and the ferret was kicked inside by Hicks. He closed the door after himself and slammed the wanted poster of the ferret down on the desk. The roadrunner-thief himself was sitting on his knees on the floor with his hands tied behind his back and his mouth gagged, too dehydrated and exhausted to even try to run away.

"Luke Esteban, 'runner-thief" Hicks said lowly as sheriff Mortimer put his newspaper down and picked the poster up.

"I'm guessin' that'cha want yer 350 dollars now, huh?" The sheriff asked and glanced up at the young bountyhunter, who nodded silently. Mortimer sighed and began to rummage through the drawers underneath his desk. "I'm afraid I'll have to send you to the bank with a check, I've just got enough for the man who'll be here with that Jack Bell fella. I reckon he'll be here anytime soon!"

Hicks cocked an eyebrow. "Someone's caught Railroad-Jack?" He asked, and Mortimer nodded. "Who?"

"Oh, I dunno..." The groundhog said with a shrug and began scribbling out a check. "I think he goes by the name of 'Rango' or somethin'... Accordin' to the other counties, he's a real hotshot! An' he gets very cranky if he doesn't get all his money at once!"

The coyote gritted his fangs and nodded. He had heard of Rango, the bountyhunter all dressed in black, riding a black roadrunner who was said to have been hatched in hell itself. As if emerged from nowhere, this man was said to be death impersonated, and people wouldn't be surprised if he was the brother of the Grim Reaper himself! But Hicks wasn't too impressed with rumors; he'd much rather see the man perform the legendary deeds for himself!

With a snort, he turned to the billboard, cluttered with wanted posters while he waited for the sheriff to write the check. There was the usual: roadrunner-thieves, murderers, bank-robbers, deserters, and the poster for the train robber Railroad Jack was nailed down in the corner. But if this Rango-fella indeed had captured him and brought him here, the poster would surely be taken down later. He turned his head to keep an eye on his prisoner when a poster caught his eye. The reward was set really high, but that wasn't why it had gotten his attention. It looked new, and it didn't take long for Hicks to recognize the lizard it was picturing: Harry Cold. The very same man who had been the one to pull the trigger on his parents!

He froze up as he stared at the poster. Flashbacks from that night played before his eyes as he once again stared at the face of one of the killers. Hell, just seeing the poster made his blood boil! Harry Cold had been the one to hold the gun. He had killed Eugene and Carla Red in cold blood, and almost got their little boy as well! And he had done it all in orders from Garcia...

But suddenly, a muffled mumbling interrupted his thoughts, and he glared down at the ferret, still lying tied up on the floor. He growled something low and walked up to his bounty, Luke Esteban, and forced him up on his knees so he could pull down the gag.

"Look, man..." Luke said in a weak, raspy voice and licked his cracked lips. "Can I NOW have some water? I'll even say please?" Hicks muttered something and gagged him again, Luke gave up a whining groan when he was dragged up on his wobbly feet.

"My deputy is off on a break, but ya could lock him up in one of the cells" Sheriff Mortimer said and handed the bountyhunter a keyring and the check. "I'll git him some water later... Not that a 'runner-thief deserve any though..." He added with a snort, and went back to his newspaper.

Hicks went to the jailhouse in the back and threw the ferret into the first, best, empty cell he could find, untied the ropes holding his hands behind his back and locked the door. He ignored the ferrets nagging and pleading and returned to the office. He threw a look back at Harry Colds poster and then turned to the sheriff.

"Where was he last seen?" He asked, and the sheriff looked up over his newspaper and gave the bountyhunter a puzzled look. "Harry Cold"

Sheriff Mortimer frowned and put his newspaper down again. "Ya outta yer damn mind, Red?!" He exclaimed. "Ya ain't seriously thinkin' of goin' after Cold now, are ya?"

"He was there, sheriff! He shot my parents!" Hicks replied, raising his voice as well. "An' where he is, I'll find Garcia too!"

"I'm sorry fer what happened to yer family, Red, I really am, but I can't in good conscience send ya out after someone like Harry Cold!" He shook his head and picked his newspaper up again, picking up from where he left. "B'sides, I'm gonna ask someone else to go after him later"

Hicks growled and slammed his palms on the desk, making the sheriff jump and stare up at the snarling coyote. "Who?!"

But before the sheriff could answer, the door to the office was briskly opened and a dark figure stepped inside. "Sorry to keep ya waitin', sheriff" A dark, yet young, voice said and the figure took off his hat to dust it off. "We got lost on our way here!"

The stranger was a lizard, a green and yellow basilisk, all dressed in black; black jeans, a black shirt and a black jacket. He appeared to be just over twenty. Hicks frowned suspiciously, but then flinched in surprise when another figure pushed her way through the door; a black, female roadrunner, carrying a limp body over her back. Hicks moved out of the way when the roadrunner walked up to the equally confused sheriff Mortimer and dumped the body of a tall, slim silver fox on the desk.

"Jack Bell, aka Railroad-Jack! Now, my three grand please?" The black clad basilisk, obviously a bountyhunter too, said and walked up to the desk as well, standing beside the roadrunner.

Sheriff Mortimer gulped and poked at the fox with his pen. "Oh, s-so you're Rango, I presume?" He asked and glanced up at the lizard.

"The one an' only!" The bountyhunter nodded.

The sheriff looked back down at Jack Bell and poked at him one more time. "He seems a bit... Absent?"

"Good, he should be; he's dead" Rango ignored the shocked expression of both Hicks and the sheriff. "The poster DID say 'dead or alive', an' speakin' of which, it also said this piece of flesh would be worth three thousand American dollars..."

"Oh, right!" Sheriff Mortimer gulped one more time and hurried to rummage through his drawers. "I-I was told to keep the m-money ready..." He mumbled and laughed in relief when he found the envelope. "Ah, here you go! Three big ones!" He handed them over to the bountyhunter in black, who quickly snatched the envelope out of his hands and opened it to count the money.

Hicks watched the other bountyhunter with suspicion. He had heard a lot about this man, who had appeared in the bountyhunting business three years ago, just half a year before Rattlesnake-Jake, or the Grim Reaper, became known all around the Mojave Desert. He was a bit younger than what Hicks had thought though. Suddenly he felt someone staring at him, and looked at the roadrunner that had followed the bountyhunter into the office. She was staring straight at him with her pale yellow eyes narrowed and the crest on her head slightly risen. That a roadrunner would follow into the office wasn't exactly a common phenomenon, and he found himself returning the glare the bird gave him...

A sudden, short whistle made the roadrunner look back at the bountyhunter, and Hicks frowned. "C'mon, Arrow, we're done here!" Rango said and nodded with his head at the door. Arrow, the bird, gave Hicks one last, weird look before following her master to the door, but halfway there they were both stopped.

"Umm, Mr Rango? There's just one more thing though!" Sheriff Mortimer said and got up from his chair, walked over to the billboard and yanked the wanted poster of Harry Cold down. Hicks angrily gritted his fangs as the sheriff walked up to the other bountyhunter and handed him the poster. "I just got this one, Harry Cold. He was recently seen in our neighboring town, Rimrock"

The bountyhunter whistled when he saw the reward. "Wow, five thousand for this fella? What did he do?"

"He's a henchman of this troublesome youth Joey Garcia-...!"

"Garcia, huh? I heard 'bout him, he's quite the nutjob, ain't he?"

"Umm, yeah... Nutjob... Ahem, I was thinkin' that maybe you'd wanna go get this guy, he seems to be within yer league!"

Rango snorted out a chuckle. "Buddy, nobody's in my league" He said and inspected the poster with a smirk, but then nodded at the sheriff. "Sure thing, just point me in the direction of Rimrock an' I'll-...!"

"Sorry to break it to ya..." Hicks growled and pushed the sheriff to the side so he could stand face to face with the lizard. "But I'm already gonna go after Cold, he's mine!"

"No ya aint, Red! We've talked 'bout this already!" The sheriff objected, but was ignored by the coyote.

Rango first looked at Hicks with a skeptically raised eyebrow, but then he grinned and chuckled. "You're gonna go after someone with five k on his head, kid? Ya got guts, that's for sure!"

"I ain't goin' after him for the money, if that's what you're thinkin'! Or a sense of glory!"

"Why then?"

Hicks hesitated, but then he gritted his fangs. "It's none of yer damn business!"

The lizard held up his hands in front of himself and chuckled. "Nah, you're right! It ain't!" He said and lowered his hands again, looking at the young coyote with an amused smirk and a slightly tilted head. "So, I'm gonna go get Cold, ya wanna go get Cold... Guess this makes us rivals, doesn't it?"

"He's not goin' to go after Cold, he's too young an' inexperienced!" The sheriff snorted and went between the two bountyhunters. The groundhog turned to Hicks with a scowl. "An' if ya don't shut yer trap an' give up on yer suicide vengeance plans, Red, I'll lock ya up in the jailhouse, y'hear me?" Hicks growled lowly and flattened his ears, but didn't talk back. The other bountyhunter chuckled again.

"Too bad, I don't mind a lil' bit of competition..." He folded the wanted poster and stuck it in the pocket of his black leather jacket. "So, what way to Rimrock?"

"It's to the northwest, in the mountains outside the desert" Sheriff Mortimer said and pointed with his finger. "You'll know it when ya see it!" He paused and threw a look at the roadrunner after Rango tapped the brim of his hat as a 'thanks you' and turned to the door. "Though next time, ya don't mind keepin' yer bird outside?"

Rango stopped with the hand on the doorhandle and arched a brow at the sheriff. "Why? Where I go, she go! Or she'll be impossible to deal with!" And with that, he stepped outside, accompanied by his bird.

The sheriff muttered something and scratched the back of his neck before returning to the desk. Hicks was silently staring at the door, his hands balled at his sides. "I meant what I said though, Red..." He heard the sheriff say from the desk, but didn't turn to look at him. "Revenge won't bring yer parents back, an' it'll only help spread sorrow further!" The sheriff grimaced and poked at the corpse on his desk with his pen again. "Can ya go get Mr Down, the undertaker? I can tell this fella has been dead for a while... Yuck!"

…

The sun was starting to set beyond the edgy cliffs, and Hicks stood in front of the general store with his saddlebag thrown over one shoulder, rolled blankets and a water canteen under one arm, and holding his rifle in the other hand. Above the store lived the owners, Mr and Mrs Greene. The couple that took him in after he lost everything and everyone.

They were nice people, and if anyone were to ever speak a bad word about them, Hicks would personally hunt them down and make them pay for it! But, they weren't his real parents, and they never were nor ever would be. Though sometimes, they were probably the only friends he had and despite that he was a bountyhunter, they'd always welcome him back home with open arms.

They were happy to see him when he stepped inside the store, as always. They didn't usually wanna talk about the fact that he's a bountyhunter, but this night over dinner, Edmund tried to talk to him about quitting chasing after dangerous outlaws, but Hicks never answered.

That night he lied in his old room, staring up at the roof. Harry Cold was in Rimrock, barely two days away! He, if anyone, knew where Garcia was, and sheriff Mortimer was a fool if he thought that he'd give up on his revenge! He's had years to prepare himself for the next meeting with Garcia, and this time he wouldn't be some scared, sniveling pup; this time he'd kill the other coyote. With the knife his father gave him. And nobody would get in his way, neither a sheriff nor another bountyhunter!

He had seen that other bountyhunter, Rango, later when he was leaving his roadrunner in the livery stable. Rango had been there, talking to his own roadrunner and had only given Hicks an acknowledging nod when he entered. He didn't know when Rango would leave, but he'd probably leave early the next day. In any case, that's what Hicks would do; both him and Rango were after the same man. And if the rumors about the bountyhunter in black were true, then he'd definitely need a head start!

**Yeah, a pretty short chapter... **

**Rango and Bentleys stories have been more or less like montages of their life, but Hicks story will be a bit different; it'll mostly take place now when he's 19 years old, since that and the death of his parents were the only big events in his life and plot against Garcia, before meeting the porcupine brothers and Coral that is =P**

**Anyway, I'll see when the next chapter comes, ciao 'til then ;P!**


	3. Rimrock

**FINALLY! For some reason I've been struggling really hard with this one o_o! Sorry for the long wait...**

***** Chapter Three : Rimrock *****

The sun had barely began to peek up above the horizon when Hicks snuck out. He head directly towards the livery stable and drew an inner sigh of relief when he saw that Rangos black roadrunner still was in her stall. Hopefully, he'd have a couple of hours headstart now!

Both his 'parents' and the sheriff would go through the roof if they knew about this, so he had gone out before the rest of the town woke up as well. He knew Mr and Mrs Greene would worry about him, and he always felt bad for worrying them by being a bountyhunter and all, but this time it was for real. This time he had found out the whereabouts of the very man who pulled the trigger on his parents, and he was sure to know something about the one behind it all: Joey Garcia. He could NOT let this chance fall into someone elses hands! Especially not Rango, since he seemed to kill all his bounties, and unless someone discovered how to bring the dead back to life, there were no way in which anyone could interrogate a dead person.

So he quickly saddled his roadrunner, threw his light packing over the back of the saddle and rode out of the town. To his relief, he never saw as much as a glimpse of the other bountyhunter. Good! He needed all the time he could get!

Though on his way to Rimrock, he realized he was passing through his old home and for reasons not even he could fathom, he decided to turn into the remains of the farm. Just paying his old folks a visit...

For eleven years, the charcoaled remains of the old Red family farm had been left to the mercy of the nature. The ruins were covered in reddish sand, and practically all that remained was the well, the stove and the chimney of the house and the brick foundations of the barn. Along with a few charred stumps of wood sticking up here and there. It had been years since anyone as much as set a foot here.

He remembered that the farm had been the most affected victim of the drought that had lasted for years, and the only thing they had been able to grow was corn and potatoes. Though ironically, a couple of weeks after his parents death and funeral, it had started to rain, and for a while, the farm had been completely overrun by plants and vegetation! But now, it was back to its dry, sandy state.

His family had been small, poor and exposed, but they were happy. Even if his mother sometimes forced him to play piano, and even if his father sometimes would ride away with those bad men and stay away for weeks in a rows. His mother was the kindest and most loving woman on Earth, and his father was strong, brave and fun, and no matter how long he stayed away he'd ALWAYS be back in time for dinner! For potatoes and corn. What he wouldn't give to be eating nothing but potatoes and corn again...

He caught himself wiping a stray tear away from the corner of his eye. This place brought back so many memories that he asked himself why in tarnation he'd EVER wanna go back here! So, with a low last goodbye to the remnants of his childhood home, he turned his roadrunner around and continued to Rimrock, now more eager than ever to get his hands on Harry Cold!

…

Rimrock was only a couple of hours away from Bedrock, and was a mountainside town that rested dangerously close to a steep cliff, with only a tall palisade wall to protect them from the drop. The town wasn't very big, but it wasn't a smalltown either. It was somewhere in the middle.

And in the mountains above the town and its drop, was an old, abandoned mineshaft where Harry Cold had his headquarters, along with a few men he had handpicked to follow him. Outside the entrance to the mine was Harry and two of the men sitting around a campfire, whose fire had long since burnt out and only charcoal and cold ashes were left inside the ring of rocks. The lizard with the dark turquoise eyes were silently staring down at the cold campfire, while the other two, a doormouse and a red-eyed treefrog, was arguing about something but Harry had since long shut them out. He was too deep into his own thoughts to even notice that they were there. It was only when he heard the distant rumbling of an approaching roadrunner and rider that he became aware of his surroundings again and looked up just as a rider, the third member of his little 'gang', arrived.

"Cold!" The rider, a possum, hollered, and Harry arched a quizzical brow. The other two piped down too, the possum was alarmed by something and whatever he was here to say didn't seem to bode well for any of them! "I was down in Rimrock, a-an' I was just passin' the sheriffs office...!" He jumped down from his roadrunner and sprinted the short distance left between him and the others. "A-an' I heard that they're sendin' a bountyhunter, Cold! Sheriff Mortimer in Bedrock has sent a bountyhunter out fer ya!"

Harry didn't budge his emotionless face. "That's all?" He said after the possum went silent to catch his breath. "We've dealt with bountyhunters before, Fickle, what's so special 'bout this one?"

Fickle, the possum, gulped and glanced over at the direction to the town. "I-I heard it's Rango, Cold. Rango! You've heard 'bout 'im, right?"

The mouse and the frog exchanged a nervous glance while Harry once again appeared unfazed. Of course he's heard about Rango. Who hadn't heard about Rango? "When will he be here?"

"I-I think they said this afternoon, Cold"

Harry didn't say anything. Instead, he quietly got up from the log he was sitting on and walked towards the mines entrance. "Keanan, Joss, Fickle" As he said the names of his men still with his back towards them, they all tensed up and watched him. "Y'all better go make yourselves ready; we're paying Rimrock a visit tonight"

…

Hicks watched the sign that said 'Rimrock', and then glanced at the town, seemingly balancing on the edge of the world. He had never been in Rimrock before, but he was still familiar with it and knew that sheriff Mortimer and sheriff Cobs of Rimrock were childhood best friends. Therefore, a good reason to keep his distance to the sheriff, if possible. The last thing he wanted was to have Cobs getting suspicious towards him and alert sheriff Mortimer, thus probably causing a whole lot of problems for them all.

He entered the town just as the clock on a church further away struck twelve and managed to get both a stall in the stable for his roadrunner, and the cheapest room in the hotel. The next hours he spent doing some research in the town. Everyone knew Harry Cold stayed somewhere in the area, although they had no idea where. And nobody dared to keep their doors unlocked as long as the outlaw was in the area, and the rumors that the bountyhunter Rango was coming had spread like a wildfire. Everyone was hoping that he would be able to defeat Harry once and for all and finally put him to justice. For some reason, it all annoyed Hicks greatly, hearing the townspeople praise the bountyhunter in black before he even got the job done! Hell, Hicks wasn't even sure if he really DID all those things they say he did! Like, taking out an entire gang of bankrobbers on his own, or meeting the Spirit of the West! Sure, his roadrunner had appeared to be different from the common stock, that he had to admit, but her rider was possibly just a big liar!

When Hicks had rode into town, nobody had batted an eye. But when the other bountyhunter rode into town a couple of hours later, there had been a big commotion on the streets. Hicks had been sitting in his hotel room, cleaning his gun when he heard the mass gather outside. He got up from his chair and looked out the window, only to sigh heavily when he saw Rango ride through the street.

He saw the sheriff run up to Rango and talk to him about something, but was interrupted when a journalist scurried in between and tried to get the bountyhunters attention. Probably to interview him, that hack. But instead, Rango dismounted and followed the sheriff to the station, his bird angrily snapped her beak at the journalist before following her master, but this time she seemed to stay on the outside.

Hicks muttered something to himself and went back to his gun on the table. So much for a head start! Now both of the bountyhunters were here, out to get Harry Cold and so far, the odds weren't exactly in Hicks' favor.

…

That night, after having spent the rest of the afternoon doing some reconnaissance in the surrounding forest, Hicks contemplated going down to the saloon. Both to get a drink and to see if he could get someone to give him any leads on Cold. He knew the other bountyhunter had very likely already done so, probably with better results than Hicks would get, but it was worth a shot.

Conveniently enough, the town only had one saloon which was just further down the street from the hotel Hicks stayed at. It was getting late and the men working in the surrounding ranches and the forest were already thirsty, and was starting to occupy the place. Hicks winced; crowded, noisy places really wasn't his thing, but if it would help him get closer to Cold...

Nobody seemed to be paying any attention to the young coyote as he entered through the swinging door, so he quietly made his way to the bar and sat down on one of the tall chairs. Immediately, a female lizard wearing a revealing red dress and her black hair tied in a loose braid appeared behind the bar, leaning her right hand on the surface.

"So" She said and twirled a strand of black hair around her finger. "What's it gonna be, cowboy?"

"Information" Hicks answered and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Uh-huh? 'Bout what?"

"'Bout Harry Cold"

She went silent for a while, staring at him with an unimpressed look on her face. "Don't say nuthin'; you're that other bountyhunter who's here to catch him, huh?" Hicks didn't answer, so she sighed and leaned forward, resting her elbows on the counter. "Listen, kid, they've already hired a pro to git'im, a real badass, so don't go wastin' yer energy on this; I'm pretty sure this 'Rango' fella have it in the bag already!"

"Is that so?" Hicks growled lowly, but the lizard just threw her braid over her shoulder and nodded.

"Yeah, so if I were you'd I'd git myself a drink or two, jus' have a good time an' then go find myself some new poor soul to drag in" She made a gesture to the shelf of bottles behind her. "So, cowboy; what's it gonna be?"

Hicks didn't answer her. Instead, he slowly turned around so he was facing the rest of the saloon, leaning backwards against the bar. "Hey!" He hollered over the sound of men drinking, laughing and whooping. "I'm lookin' for Harry Cold, an' I know y'all are familiar with him!" The saloon silenced down for a moment, and the attention was turned to the young coyote by the bar. Hicks looked at them without changing his expression from the same cold glare. "If anyone knows where I can find him, speak up! I have a bone to pick with him!"

"You've got a death wish, boy?" Someone said from the crowd and and agreeing chuckle went through the saloon.

"Yeah, jus' leave it to Rango!"

"You'd only be diggin' yer own grave, kid! Let the professional deal with men like Cold!"

And as the crowd went back it its noisy, drunken business, Hicks growled and flattened his ears to his neck. Why didn't they take him seriously?! The other bountyhunter couldn't be that many years older than him!

The female lizard once again sighed and shook her head. "I told'cha, cowboy" She said and leaned over the counter again. "Leave Harry to the pro! He'll git that bastard locked up in no time!"

Hicks gritted his fangs. "I can't let him do that..." He said lowly. "I've gotta score to settle with Cold..."

"So does we all, but he's way out of our league! Yers too!"

He threw a last glare at the lizard, then he turned his back on her and left through the door. He was bitterly making his way back to the hotel with his hands in his pockets as a cold wind swept through the street he was walking on. He needed to get his hands on Cold before Rango did, but unless people stopped underestimate him, he'd remain clueless! All he knew was that Cold was hanging out somewhere in the mountains, together with a small, yet lethal, gang. Sometimes they come down to Rimrock on a raiding spree, only to leave just as suddenly as they came. Though nobody knew for sure what they were doing here in Rimrock, or even where they came from.

Hicks had just reached his room when a sudden gunshot was heard. He stopped and perked his ears as the sound of roadrunners coming into the town was heard, shortly followed by more, haphazardly fired gunfire. Yanking his gun out of his holster, he ran up to the window and peeked down, just as a gang rode in on the street underneath. The gang stopped not too far from the hotel so he could still see them, and noticed that the gang consisted of a doormouse, a possum-rat and some sort of green frog, and they were all being led by a tall, dark greenish turquoise lizard. The coyote tensed up when he recognized the lizard; it was HIM! Harry Cold! It HAD to be him! He began to tremble, still holding the gun in his hand, and his heart began to hammer so hard that it was getting difficult for him to hear what the lizard was shouting.

"So, I've heard there's someone here who's been looking for me, huh?!" Harry hollered and held his nervously tip-toeing roadrunner back. In his gangmembers hands were smoking guns as they were looking around for any hidden shooters. "Rango, is that correct?!"

People were hurrying to get away from the streets and hid themselves in their homes or the stores, nobody wanted to be around now when the outlaws were in town again. Hicks couldn't move from his spot, still looking out through the cracked window down at the street. He didn't care that the outlaw had come for Rango; he was here! He was just mere FEET away from him! He COULD easily kill him from this distance!

He raised his revolver to pull the trigger back, but changed his mind. It would be wrong to shoot him down from here, hiding in his room. Besides, he much rather wanted to see the man hanged for his crimes, and NOT just for the death of his family! Hicks made up his mind, holstered his gun and ran down the stairs.

But upon arriving to the streets, he noticed that a crowd had began to form again, everyone's attention was turned to the two lizards on the street, facing each other; Rango and Harry Cold. How could the other bountyhunter have gotten there so fast?! Hicks stayed back, angrily gritting his fangs with a shaking hand hovering above his gun.

"I'll be honest with you; I hate bountyhunters" Harry said as he and Rango was watching each others every move.

Rango nodded. "That's understandable. I'd do too"

"I hate it when they're snooping around, acting like they know what they're doing..."

"Did'cha seriously just call me out to insult me an' my profession? Wow! Ya should be called Harry Bold!"

"Not at all" Harry shook his head. "Since I don't see the use in trying to avoid the unavoidable, I've decided that we should just finish this here and get it over with"

"Ah, you've come to turn yourself in, eh? Great! Saves me a LOT of trouble-...!"

"What?! No! I'm here to settle this with you like men! Face to face, in a duel!"

"Oh..." Rango did a disappointed sigh. "To tell ya the truth; I ain't much for duelin'... But I guess I ain't got much of a choice if I wanna catch ya, huh?" Harry nodded, and Rango tilted his head to the side. "An' it's to the death, I presume?" He asked, and Harry nodded again. Rango replied by grinning. "Good!"

Hicks flinched. If the bountyhunter killed Cold now, Hicks would be back on square one with NO clues what-so-ever about Garcia and his hideout! He HAD to stop them somehow! He watched as the two lizards took a couple of steps away from each other, getting themselves ready to draw..

Rango threw a skeptical glance at Harrys three companions. "How do I know yer friends over there won't interfere?" He asked and narrowed his eyes at them.

"They won't" Harry said, and they nodded in agreement.

"Nah, we won't have to!" The treefrog said and grinned, the other two chuckled.

"Good, keep thinkin' that!" Rango nodded and turned his attention back to Harry.

The two lizards stood like that, frozen to the ground. Just waiting. Hicks looked around and noticed what they were waiting for; the big clock perched on top of the church at the end of the street was mere seconds away from eight o' clock. They were waiting for the clock to strike, and on the last strike they'd draw. Hicks made it to the front row and glanced at the man to the left, a jackrabbit. And a ranch worker judging by the strong javelina-smell coming from him. He was carrying a gun on his right side, just like Hicks.

Hicks clenched his jaw and let one of his hands sneak closer to the other mans gun, the other one hovered over his own. He was focusing on the sounds from the clock, every nerve in his body was tense and ready to spring. He had never been in a duel before, but he had heard about the massive adrenaline rush you get, and even if he wasn't one of the duelists here, he was still on the verge of going mad as he felt the blood boil in his systems and his heart racing madly. The two real duelists however, didn't seem to budge. They just watched each other with the same cold, determined face, not even breathing as the waited for the clock to strike.

The entire town was dead-silent, everyone seemed to be holding their breaths. The sun was getting closer to the horizon, the streams of light was covering the town in cold shadows, but the two lizards didn't care. They were only seeing their opponent, and listening for the clock.

_Dong..._

The first bell chime finally caused a reaction from the lizards; they both tensed up and reached for their guns. Hicks bit down on his lip, hard enough to puncture the skin. It was happening!

_Dong..._

_Dong..._

_Dong..._

Everyone was counting the strikes, and Hicks felt sweat break out on his forehead. He tried to keep his hands from trembling, but to no avail. Not even the other bountyhunter seemed to be able to keep from shaking. The only one who didn't seem to be trembling with anticipation was Harry.

_Dong..._

_Dong..._

_Dong..._

Hicks felt his heart stop and his mind go blank. _Now!_

_Dong..._

Just as the last 'dong' went through the town, both of the lizard drew their revolvers in a flash and two gunshots echoed. But neither of the lizard had fired a single shot; the two bullets that had been fired had knocked their revolvers out of their hands and both of them stared in shock at their empty hands. Then their heads turned to the crowd and they both spotted the young, ashblonde coyote, holding two smoking guns in his hand. The jackrabbit next to him yelped and began to fumble for his own gun.

"H-he took mah gun!" The jackrabbit yelped and stared at Hicks, who ignored his looks.

Rango angrily gritted his teeth while Harry watched Hicks with an unreadable expression. "The HELL do ya think you're doin', kid!?" The bountyhunter angrily growled and took a step towards the coyote, but stopped when he aimed one of the guns in his hands at him.

Hicks didn't say anything, but he kept the gun pointing at the other bountyhunter as he walked out into the street, his eyed fixated at Harry. "Harry Cold..." He said lowly, but the dark turquoise lizard didn't budge. "R'member me, Cold?" He continued and took a couple of steps closer to the outlaw, but stopped when the rest of the gang drew their guns at him.

"Hold your fire" Harry hurried to tell his gang without looking at them. Instead he tilted his head slightly to the side and frowned, as if trying to recall something. "Have we met before?"

The sight of his murdered parents flashed in front of Hicks eyes, and the young coyote flattened his ears. "Yeah... We've met before..." He growled. "The name's Red... Hicks Red..."

Harry didn't seem especially surprised. He just nodded slowly. "Yeah, I see that now". Suddenly another gunshot went off and the tall, longlegged lizard swiftly dodged to the side when he felt a bullet graze against his neck.

Rango had retrieved his gun and fired at the other lizard. "HEY! Our duel ain't over! Git BACK 'ere!" He hollered and fired again, but Harry quickly made his way to his roadrunner, swiftly threw himself up in the saddle and set off with his gang.

Rango cursed and fired off a couple of more rounds until his revolver clicked. He cursed louder and threw his gun onto the ground and turned to Hicks again, his face was distorted into an enraged snarl.

"You IDIOT!" He lunged for the young coyote, and Hicks threw his guns away and got ready for the impact.

Rangos fist came harder and faster than Hicks predicted however and upon making contact with Hicks jaw, his head was tossed back and black dots danced in front of his eyes. But shortly after the punch, a punch to his gut followed, making Hicks double over. But he quickly recovered and surprised Rango with a headbutt on his way up again, shortly followed by a punch clear in his face.

They were just about to lunge for each other again when the public interfered; a couple of men rushed forward to hold the two brawlers apart while the sheriff emerged from the crowd. Sheriff Cobs, a tall dark brown rooster, sighed and shook his head when he saw the fighters. That made Rango growl angrily and free himself from the men holding him back.

"Sheriff, I would've been down to the office with Colds body now, if it weren't for this pup!" He said and pointed a stiff finger at Hicks. He looked ready to pop a vein any second! "He interfered with our duel! Sheriff, I had that sonnova bitch RIGHT where you're standin' now!"

"Ya don't understand!" Hicks objected and yanked his arms free. "I need Cold alive! He-...!"

"But this world doesn't!" Sheriff Cobs cut him off. "Listen, kid, if you're gonna run 'round an' git in Rangos way, I ain't gonna have much choice but to lock ya up, y'hear?"

Hicks clenched his jaw, which still stung after the other bountyhunters punch. He didn't answer the sheriff.

"Just lock 'im up, sheriff..." Rango muttered and wiped his bleeding nose with the sleeve of his black jacket. "I met this kid in Bedrock, an' seein' how he's here despite that the sheriff told him not to go, he ain't gonna give up on Cold 'til either of 'em are dead. He's gonna keep gettin' in my way!"

"Sheriff Mortimer, eh?" He arched an eyebrow at Hicks, who instantly averted his eyes with a frustrated grunt. "You're Red, Bedrocks bountyhunter?" Hicks bitterly nodded in reply. "An' you're here for Cold as well?"

"Yeah... He knows Joey Garcia, the man who murdered my parents!" Hicks bitter reply made the townspeople gasp and exchange glances. "That's why I need him alive; I need him to tell me where I can find that murderin' sonnova bitch an' make him pay for what he did!"

It had been a while since Joey Garcias name had been uttered here, but they still remembered the times when that evil child had the entire county as his playground. Robbing, burning and killing wherever he went. Even the sheriff was shocked, but after a while his face hardened and he made a sign for his deputies to come forth and arrest the young coyote.

"You're comin' with me to the station"

Hicks flinched and tried to back away from the deputies, both were coyotes just like him. "W-what?! NO! Why?! I ain't done nothin'!"

"For yer own safety, Red!" The rooster said sternly. "Mortimer's warned me 'bout you; you're on this suicide-quest, you're goin' up against Garcia on yer own, regardless of yer own life!"

"My life's insignificant!" Hicks growled in protest as the other coyotes managed to slap a pair of shackles on his wrists. "What's important is that the monster gets what he deserves; a one way ticket back to the hell he spawned from!"

"I'm gonna have to lock ya up 'til Mortimer can come an' git ya home, an' I hope he'll have 'nuff sense to keep ya locked up 'til ya return to yer senses, kid!"

"Ya can't do this!" Hicks roared and tried to free himself from the shackles and the deputies grips, but to no avail. All he could do was to toss and turn as he got dragged to the sheriff station.

But as he was taken away, he couldn't help but to throw a quick glance at the other bountyhunter, and was surprised at what he saw. Rango wasn't glaring at him anymore, he looked surprised. Impressed even! Despite that he had appeared to be willing to kill him just moments before! He gave Hicks some sort of acknowledging nod, but Hicks only growled at him and did an attempt to break free once more.

**So yeah, once again a thousand apologies for the lateness o_o"... Hopefully, next chapter won't take this long! But MAN was I having a hard time with this chapter for some reason, gee -.-! I just didn't know how to go on once Hicks got to Rimrock, and to tell y'all the truth, I'm not overly satisfied with how it turned out, bleh...**

**Anyway, I'll see when I can finish the next chapter, hopefully it won't take another frickin' month and a half for me to do it!**


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